The Spartans had plenty of opportunities to take care of their bowl business on their own to get to six wins, but they lost three of their last four games and four of their final six to go 5-7 and seemingly finish up their season.

But a positive Academic Progress Rate – and a lack of eligible bowl teams – meant a Cure Bowl appearance, a win over Georgia State, and something positive after not going bowing in since 2012.

Head coach Ron Caragher had his teams playing hard and playing tough since his arrival two years ago.

He’s got the quarterback in Kenny Potter, and the strong receiving corps that should be among the best in the Mountain West.

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He’s got a veteran offensive line, enough backs to make up for the loss of Tyler Ervin, and a defense that has just enough key producers returning to be far better.

So can this possibly be a return to 2012, when everything came together for now-Colorado coach Mike McIntrye on the way to an 11-2 season?

The Spartans might not be that good, and they’d need some massive breaks to be deep in the hunt for the Mountain West title, but gone are the days of San Jose State being a doormat. This is a good, competitive program that’s going to be in just about every game.

Caragher has his best team yet, and now he has a great chance to make a bowl game without any sort of quirky exceptions.